Reason
by Rose of Winter
Summary: Who is the Miniature Killer? Everyone wants to know who the MK is, and why he or she kills, but can everyone handle the truth? [AU, changed from show pre 'Lab Rats'] Twisted GSR.
1. Reason

Reason- Prologue

_March 2007- three months until the end…_

In observation we find that life, even its basest parts, always makes sense. Truly it is a frightening thought that even murder can make sense to the mind. Yet if we understand that there are reasons which cause people to harm others, we see that even the most heinous of crimes can be explained. Reason, it's a word that has many definitions, several are as follows: sound judgment, logical argumentation, the cause of an action, justification of an action, and sanity.

We can all rationalize our actions, explain to ourselves why we have to do certain things and why we do them, even when we don't want to commit certain actions. That's how I was able to do it, how I was able to kill. The funny thing is that I'm not what everyone thinks I am. The first murder I committed was the only one I meant to commit using force. The second I used force during because I was caught. I only meant for her to be poisoned, not for her to go through a window. The third I didn't commit, and the fourth wasn't my intended target. I do however find satisfaction in the fact that my original target died anyway.

The miniatures were an afterthought. It was a challenge for the crime lab, the people who think they know me. It's laughable really, that they believe they know who I am.

I had been a foster child of the Dell's from before their son was born, and I remained in their care until I turned eighteen. I was the one recording the video that everyone watched in the lab. It didn't even occur to them to find out what state Ernie Dell lived in during the '80s. Then they'd have a better chance of knowing that I'm to so called "miniature killer." I don't even understand the title, it's not like I've killed a miniature, but I digress.

The miniatures were built by Ernie and I. He had more time than I did, so he did most of the construction. I was able to get into the homes of the first, second, and fourth victims using various methods of trickery. I took pictures with my phone of the rooms and memorized the rest, although the layouts to some of the homes we found online. Of course I also observed the targets for some time before each of them was killed.

I wanted to see if the people in the lab could figure it out, especially Grissom. Of all the people I've met, his obsessiveness over crimes is hard to match. So I wanted him to have a puzzle to solve. That's why I made the miniatures.

I suppose another reason, upon giving it more thought, is that I want to get caught. I want people to understand what the doll means. I want the guilty to be punished. I want justice, and I believe that I too must face justice.

If the murders had remained unconnected, my story never would have been told. I wouldn't have been able to prove how intelligent I am. I never would have given Grissom the ultimate challenge. And most of all, a death never would have been avenged.

Do you want to know why I killed?

Do you want to know if I'll kill again?

Do you want to understand me?

Do you want to know _who I am_?

* * *

To Be Continued... 


	2. Tired

**Notes**: _While this story contains GSR,_ _it is not the focus of the story and shouldn't prevent you from reading the full story. The reason it contains GSR is because I am trying to have the story fit (somewhat) within the timeline of the show. _

_Grissom and Sara have been dating for two years, given the starting point being shortly after Nick's kidnapping. _

_I am not going to show you who the killer is right away, but am leaving the field open for a couple chapters. While there are many theories as to whom the MK is, I have chosen three of the more popular ones as suspects. Yes, I know who I'm making the MK. _

_Thank you for the reviews._

Reason- Chapter 1 

_Early April 2007- two months before then end… _

"I'm tired of hiding," Sara told Grissom as she leaned against the bedroom door.

He turned to face her, his expression neutral. For a moment he looked at her face; she was tired, not physically, but emotionally. A few soft strands of her hair fell across her right eye, and her back was pressed against the door. He walked to her and brushed the stray hairs behind her ear. "I know."

Her eyes were pained. "Do you? Do you honestly feel horrible about keeping our relationship a secret?" She was accusatory, but not angry. He didn't answer, causing her to become more agitated. "We've been dating for nearly two years now, and we've kept it a secret from _everyone_. Greg, Warrick, Brass, Catherine, Nick, Robbins, you know, our _friends_."

He gently placed his hands on her shoulders. "You know we can't tell anyone, it would endanger out jobs." He pressed his forehead to hers. "I'm trying to protect you."

She sighed in resignation. "I know. I just hate keeping secrets from people."

* * *

David Hodges was used to spending his time alone; he didn't like it, but he was used to it. It saddened him that none of his co-workers were close to him, even though he tried to befriend them. Some of his friends from California still talked to him, but they knew him, which is why they talked to him. He supposed that he usually came off as obnoxious to some of his co-workers, even though it wasn't on purpose, it was just his personality. He didn't have a problem with Greg, and Greg didn't really have a problem with Hodges, making Greg his closest friend in Las Vegas. He always tried to impress his bosses, which was why he was more curt with everyone else, apparently his bosses weren't very impressed with him despite his efforts. 

Before leaving for work, he paused to look around his apartment. It was neat and organized, not to mention exceedingly clean. He was an almost compulsive cleaner, making sure that no germs were living in his home. It was also fairly empty and barren. He didn't realize however, that Sara, Grissom, and Sofia all had homes in similar states of emptiness, with few pictures on the walls and few memories of the past to surround them. So even though he felt alone, he wasn't the only one.

* * *

Sophia Curtis spent her time working, sleeping, and running. She also sometimes spent time with some of her friends from Days, or from the police department. They were shallow friends, the kind you talked to about a lot of things, but never really opened up to. If she ever really opened up to someone, she would have told them about her family. 

Most people knew that her mother worked somewhere in the police department. It was true; her mother did work as a warrants officer for the Las Vegas Police Department. What they didn't know was that until a few years ago, they hadn't talked for over a decade. No one knew that they were originally from California, and no one knew what her mother was like years earlier.

Her mother had always been a cop from as far back as she could remember. Unfortunately, he mother also developed a dependence on alcohol and found a boyfriend that was scum. Sophia was removed from their care and placed in a foster home. Her mother was allowed to have visits with her, but after Sophia went away to college, she stopped talking to her mother.

In more recent years, their relationship had mended some, but it would never heal completely. She still had nightmares about the treatment she had gone through while in her mother's care. She stretched before going on her afternoon run, trying to chase away her memories.

* * *

It would surprise many to learn that Sophia, Hodges, and Sara shared similar pasts. They had all been abused as children. They also had all been placed in foster care in the area of San Francisco, California during the 1980s.

* * *

After going through another long day of work, the Miniature Killer returned home. Alone in the apartment that few of their friends had entered, the killer's mind began to turn. The people who were supposed to die were dead, but the people in the lab were still awaiting the killer's return. The killer had to plan something new_. Who would work as a victim, _the killer wondered. If the puzzle was unsolved, then surely there had to be another victim. There was only one person that the killer could think of as the next, and possibly final victim. If the cards were played right, this would be the greatest puzzle that Las Vegas had ever seen.

* * *

To Be Continued... 


	3. Plots

**Note**_: I realize that the way I write when it's from the killer's perspective is a little jagged, but I'm trying to write it from the way people think, and people seldom think in nice, orderly ways. I am so sorry for the delay, college is a pain! Now that my academic stuff is over for the summer, I have less than a week to work my butt off on this story! (That's because it's got to mostly be done before "Living Doll" airs or it'll not seem quite right.) If there are any story related errors I'm sorry, but I've only seen all the eps once, and I didn't get to see "Lab Rats" because I was doing some paper or another, and that ep would have been useful :( _

Reason- Chapter 2 

_April 2007- two months before the end… _

I watch them as we work, wondering what they think. What they think about me, about work, about our jobs, about life. I feel alone with them. I feel like they judge me all the time. I try not to think about what I've done, I can't, I don't know what would happen if I did.

I'm so tired anymore, the stress of lying is wearing on me. I can see that I'm not the only one who is exhausted, even Grissom took a month off to get away. Yet if he wouldn't have left, the last target on the list wouldn't have died. I can't blame him, I knew just as well as everyone else that he was going to leave.

Upon returning home after a long day at work, I often have a lot of time to think, too much time to think. I tend to think about all the regrets I have. I regret many things I did in childhood and many things that I've done since then, as well as things I've done now as an adult. I had a daughter. I was young so we gave her up. She's dead now. She was murdered. The case was ruled an accident, but I knew better.

You see, it's my fault that she's dead. If I had been there for her when she grew up she wouldn't have died the way she did. She had so many drugs in her system that when she fell against her table and gashed her head open she didn't have the sense to get up and call 911.

I tracked down my former foster father, because he was the only one who knew about her. We looked into who she had known and found four people who were connected to her death: Izzy Dalance, Penny Garden, Raymundo Suarez, and Barbara Tallman. Izzy and Raymundo introduced her to the world of controlled substances, supplied by Penny. Barbara, the crackpot psychiatrist, never gave her guidance that worked. The four of them bore the blame for my daughter's death, so Ernie and I killed them.

When the four of them were dead I could have stopped, yet part of me couldn't. There's a line that, when crossed, is impossible to step back from. For me that line was killing Izzy. I had always told myself that I would never kill, and then I had to, and I did. I realized that I could avenge all of the pains that I felt by causing the deaths of the ones who caused my pain.

The goal of the puzzle, the miniatures, was to not only connect the murders, but to prove that I was better than the rest of them. No one in the lab understands me, actually no one understands me. I tried to get Grissom's attention, and while he sometimes pays attention, I wonder if he cares.

I've observed Grissom and the others handling the miniatures. They try to touch my mind, understand my methods. I never realized the thrill, the pleasure that can come through vengeance, through murder. It scared me at first, but eventually I embraced the feeling, if I hadn't I would have gone insane. So I work beside these people I still call friends, doing my job while trying to ignore how much of a hypocrite I am.

Something that occurs to me, that seems strange to think about, is that I have a lover, someone I spend many nights lying beside and speaking to. Yet that person doesn't know me and doesn't know what I do. I keep telling myself not to think about what I've done, because if I do I'd lose my mind.

I decided to start a new model today. The basic construction was easy enough, just a square. It's not as elegant as the miniatures Ernie made, but it's good enough. I'll be able to finish it within the month. I decided, through much debate, that the next target would be someone who hurt me. Gil Grissom hurt me many times over the years, probably not intentionally, but he hurt me just the same. When I'm finished, I'll deliver it to his home, and shortly after that it'll all be over. This game I've been playing has to end, even though it'll hurt everyone.

* * *

The lab was busy with various people rushing from one task to the next. The criminalists were bringing in the evidence; the lab techs were processing various substances, and the detectives were impatiently awaiting information to run down. Sara, Hodges, and Sofia each preformed their individual tasks in the system of law enforcement, but each was growing weary of their job. However, only one of the three was weary because he or she was the miniature killer.

* * *

_TBC... (soon!)_

_Thank you so much to my reviewers!_


	4. The Final Model

_The following paragraphs refer to the MK repeatedly as "the killer" this is to avoid referring to gender until the last possible moment for suspense, although it makes _**me** _want to hurt something to say "the killer" every other line (so please bear with it). This story is AU from a point Pre-"Lab Rats," and is probably not as mean or as scary (definitely not as scary) as "Living Doll"._

Reason- Chapter 3 

_May 2007- less than one month before the end… _

The miniature was done. The design was simple but so was Grissom's home. The killer didn't match all of the colors and furnishings exactly, it didn't matter that much with this miniature since it would be the last one. The model was of Grissom's living room, with a doll of him lying on a sofa.

The killer packaged the model in a simple cardboard box, and carried it to the car where it was placed on the back seat. Then the killer drove carefully through the dark, pre-dawn streets of the Las Vegas suburbs. It was drizzling, so the miniature builder drove even more cautiously, trying to avoid any trouble in delivering the package.

A block away from Grissom's house the killer stopped the car and took several deep breaths to remain steady. Then the killer got out of the car and took the package from the backseat before walking down the street to his door. Grissom wouldn't be home for a few more hours but the killer was still nervous, after all, there would be no turning back after this. A simple, typed note on the top of the box said: _To Grissom, From The Miniature Killer_. After setting the box down on his front steps, the killer walked quickly back to the car.

Once inside the car, the killer breathed slowly and deeply, trying to stop racing of their heart. Then the killer, who was dressed in all black, pushed back the hood of the shirt that was covering her head. Her hair fell around her neck, and she rested her head on the steering wheel for a moment. She knew that there was no turning back from that point and capture was certain because of a few details that had been built into the model. Yet even though she knew her capture was inevitable, she was strangely relieved.

* * *

That morning when Grissom returned from work, he saw the package on his steps. When he saw the label, he called it in. Within the hour Brass, Sofia, Catherine, and Sara were all there. After several moments of looking at the box on Grissom's porch, Brass spoke up. "Are you certain it's another model?" 

"I haven't looked," Grissom replied. "But the writing is similar to the other note."

Catherine crouched down next to the box. "And it's signed Miniature Killer." She opened her kit and dusted the box for fingerprints. "No prints." She paused thoughtfully, examining the box to see how it could be opened. "Does anyone have a knife?"

"How do we know it's not a bomb," Brass cautioned.

"I don't think that's our killer's style," Sofia commented before handing Catherine a pocket knife.

Catherine then carefully cut the box, cutting through the two ends of the tape and one side of the box so that the tape would be preserved. Then she opened the box. Her eyes widened, and when she spoke her voice was strained and worried. "Grissom… you should look at this."

She backed away from the box to allow everyone else to see the new miniature. One by one they all looked at the model, and then at one another. "That's my living room," Grissom stated in shock.

"How could the killer know what your home looks like," Sara questioned.

"I don't know," Grissom replied. "Let's get this back to the lab to see if there's anything we can find."

Everyone realized that Grissom was trying to act like the miniature wasn't bothering him, so they also tried to act as normally as possible too. The model was taken back to the lab, and the area around Grissom's home was processed in the hope that some evidence of the killer could be found.

* * *

_TBC…_

_Thank you to those who read and reviewed._

_The story only gets more interesting from here ;)_


	5. FBI

**Thanks for the reviews.** I hope you like it, and I hope with all my stories that I can update soon, especially since I'm going on vacation in a couple weeks. (The other stories are on my main account, which can be reached through my profile.)

Reason- Chapter 4 

_May 2007- less than one month before the end… _

Catherine and Grissom stood in a layout room looking over the new miniature. Beside it were the other miniatures. They were analyzing the details of the new miniature compared to the others. The details were more generalized in this model; the colors and furnishings were inaccurate, which was a far departure from the other miniatures. Grissom and Catherine looked at one another, puzzled.

"This isn't the same… the design is less intricate," Grissom said.

"Could it be someone else?"

He shook his head. "No, the method is the same and it's accurate; it's just not exact."

"And there's no doll image."

Grissom pulled open a drawer of a table, and then pulled out a piece of paper. Raising an eyebrow, he unfolded the paper on which was written the words _"look within." _

Catherine had a similar expression to his as she looked from the paper to him. "Look within?"

An unfamiliar voice spoke up. "That might not be a bad idea."

Catherine and Grissom turned around and saw a woman standing in the doorway beside Brass and Sofia. She had greying black hair, and was rather stern looking. She stepped into the room and extended her hand to Grissom and Catherine. "I'm Juliana Hepburn. I've been assigned to this case by the FBI."

After shaking her hand, Grissom spoke. "In what capacity?"

"I'm a forensic psychologist. I'm here to help you understand your killer."

"What if we don't accept your help," Catherine challenged.

"Then the case will be removed from your jurisdiction and be run by the FBI. I've already studied the case files, so I'm acquainted with the images of the models and crime scenes. However, I need to study the miniatures up close to make a better profile. So for now all of you can leave except for Mr. Grissom."

They all stared at her, taken aback by her brisk demeanor, but Catherine, Brass, and Sofia followed her order and left. Grissom continued to watch her after they left. "Explanation," he inquired.

"I need to talk with you. Given that you have had the most contact with this case and that you're apparently the next target, you're the first person whom I should talk to."

"You could do that with them here."

"No, I couldn't. Hasn't it occurred to you that the killer might work in the police department or crime lab?"

"No," he replied thoughtfully, his eyes widening at that particular prospect.

"We've been digging into something…" Her voice trailed off as she looked at the miniatures. "The newest model doesn't fit the pattern," she spoke softly, almost to herself.

"The design isn't exact either," Grissom offered.

"It's an afterthought… and the pictures and brutality…" She mumbled these things, and then walked around the table to look at all of the models. She also flipped through a folder of close-ups that she held, all while mumbling incoherently.

Grissom watched her for several minutes before speaking up. "Care to share?"

She put up a hand. "Give me a moment." She finished looking at the models and pictures, and then looked back at him. "The doll represents something or someone who ties the first four together. The primary focus of aggression was Delance, his was the most personal attack. Garden and Suarez were attacked in less personal manners. Finally we have the culmination in scene four where the distance is the greatest but all three images are present."

"How was Officer Kamen related to it?

Juliana gives him an incredulous look, "She wasn't, Tallman was, at least using my theory of connectivity. Besides which, the killer wouldn't know who would be put as a decoy, or that there would be a decoy."

"So why make a model of my home with no apparent connection to the others?"

"Someone with a grudge against you maybe? Currently agents are tracking down the Dell's records to find all of the children who had been in their care. They're in California, so the records may take awhile to retrieve. Until we get the information back, it may be a good idea to limit the amount of contact the various members of the local legal community have with this case."

"Do you have anyone you don't suspect?"

"You for starters."

He raised an eyebrow. "Thank you so much," he replied sarcastically. "Who else?"

"Ms. Willows, Captain Brass, Mr. Brown, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Stokes, the ME's office, and anyone who hasn't worked on this case or had contact with it."

"Is there any reason why Sara Sidle hasn't been cleared?"

"She was a foster child in California and is known to have a rather anti-social personality. She's also known to be a perfectionist."

"You studied our personnel files," he stated.

"I've also had agents probe into your personal lives to uncover information which isn't located in your files."

His eyes narrowed. "How long has the FBI been on this case?"

"Since February, when it was brought to our attention; a team of agents, including myself, were assigned to the case. I was the one who was put in charge. We've been looking through all the evidence and tracking down the leads for you."

"Who else knew about this?"

"The lab directors, sheriff, police chief, and a few others were told that we would be taking charge of the case, but that they weren't to tell anyone else. That's how we got copies of all the files and images. Captain Brass and Ms. Willows will be told shortly."

"How many suspects do you have?"

"It's hard to say right now since we're still tracking down the leads. We have some potentials though."

"Are you going to share?"

"No, but some are working in law enforcement."

"Would I know them," Grissom asked, a hint of concern in his voice.

"Yes," Juliana replied grimly.

* * *

TBC... 

5-28-2007


End file.
